Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Virginia Wanderings

I am back from teaching in Woodbridge Virginia! We had a great class on Sunday, and it was really fun to see all the variations of boxy stars these ladies turned out. I just love to meet quilters from all over.

I was so tired by 6pm that I went to a local chinese buffet, ate my fill and went back to the hotel room. All thoughts of piecing my evening hours away went out the window. I laid down, and fell asleep to some episode of Law and Order, slept through til after 7am the next morning!Sometimes I don't sleep so well in hotels. Something about the A/C running on and off and bells of elevators reverberating through the halls, noisy guests late at night who don't seem to care that people are sleeping behind closed doors. Know what I mean? But the bed was extra comfy, and I got the rest I needed!

Monday was an extra bonus! One of the gals at the boxy stars workshop, Roseanne, asked me if I wanted to join her and two of her friends for a sew-in day at her house since I didn't have to be at the guild for my lecture/trunkshow until 7pm! WEEEEEeee! Sewing with other quilters is MUCH more fun than sewing by yourself in a hotel room. I packed up my featherweight, my nearly insane (completely insane) quilt, and off I went to Aquia, about 30 minutes from where I was staying in Woodbridge. we had a GREAT sew day. Roseanne made us a summer spagetti salad that was ultra yummy (we all had to find out how she made it...) and we had chocolate amish bread for dessert. All in all I finished 7 blocks while I was away. Still have a LONG way to go tho!At 5:15pm I met up with the other quilter gals at Famous Dave's BBQ...oh YUMMY! They have a BBQ salad that is to die for! Not to mention that the corn muffins are more like corn cupcakes...good enough for dessert!

The trunk show and lecture was extra fun. I love talking to other quilters and seeing them get jazzed about organizing and cutting their scraps into useable sizes so they can turn out more quilts. When the light bulb goes on about leaders & enders...you can just see it in their faces!I headed home yesterday, taking the leisurely route. I've always wanted to stop in Fredericksburg, and I wasn't disappointed! There are a TON of antique shops there. (all the antique-y pics are from my antiquing jaunts!) I got there before 10am and the antique places weren't open yet, but the old Ben Franklin was! It is an old time Ben Franklin, complete with popcorn machine right at the front door when you walk in. I found a really neat wire basket there, and low and behold..the PERFECT backing for the nearly insane quilt.I didn't expect to find any quilts to come home with me.....but I surprised myself! A cheddar/brown/green Carpenter's Wheel! LOOK AT THIS BABY!! It was.....tada....$29.95! I love how the center star is different from the other stars, and the other stars alternate in their color pattern too. See? The quilting stitches are really nice...double rows in the border. And even though it isn't so pretty, I appreciate what the maker had to go through to get her green fabric. It's hand dyed. And obviously not long-term color fast. But she did what she could, and I love that about this quilt.I also found some cute cute hexagon heart pillows. Fabrics are shredding, but the prints are so neat, and they were 25% off in that booth and just said "take us home!" So I did.

Another jaunt down the road took me to Meadow Farm in Glen Allen, an 1860 living historical farm and museum. You can take tours of the historic house, and it is furnished. Of course I was all excited about the early treadle machine, and the quilts on the beds. There was one I wish I could have taken pics of, but my battery was dead by this time!

I got home about 11:30pm. Completely exhausted, but happy to have been able to visit everywhere! (and now this is me playing CATCH UP!!)

Wow! You come home with the best HAULS! Love those pillows but that CW quilt is amazing. $29.95, huh; are you kidding? I carry foam ear plugs in my makeup bag for when I sleep away from home, sounds like you didn't need them though! Welcome home, Bonnie.